Skyrim: Burning Valor
by The Reclaimers
Summary: Skyrim was already being torn apart by a massive civil war, but no one expected the Dragons to return. Forced to betray their factions and into working together, a Stormcloak and an Imperial must brave the harsh conditions of Skyrim together; lest they die alone. Can the two Dovakiins put aside their differences to save Skyrim, or will the dragons reign supreme?


**SGX: "Hey everybody, SuperGenX here!"**

**QOA: "And The Queen of Asgard (Or Sassguard)" **

**SGX: "We've been wanting to make a collaboration project for a while now, and a few days ago we started talking about Skyrim and how awesome it would be if we could make a story around two young heroes!"**

**QOA: "What the person above me said. Anyway, reviews are fantastic! Please be liberal with them. And as always, please enjoy!"**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 1<strong>_

_**Unbound**_

The swaying of the cart roused Arensyn from the trauma induced comatose she had been in for the last...well, at this point, she wasn't quite sure. Her head hurt and she felt like she might vomit. Snow gently fell from the grey sky and covered the landscape in a cold blanket of white, which only served to slightly hinder her finger's mobility. She glanced over at her comrade and best friend Ralof and kicked his foot gently. He opened his own eyes and looked over at her, giving her a soft smile.

"Finally, you're awake." He breathed a sigh of relief, "I thought maybe when that Imperial bastard hit you…"

"Ralof, I'm fine," She reassured him, glancing over to the other two people in the cart. One was a dark haired Nord while the other was blond, just like Ralof. He was the person who stood out the most between the three of them wearing a great cloak with a rag tied around his mouth, silencing him.

The dark haired Nord scowled at the group, "Damn you Stormcloaks. The Empire used to be nice and lazy until you challenged them. I'm not supposed to be here. If you hadn't gotten in my way, I would have stolen that horse and been halfway to Hammerfell by now."

"Yet here you are, horsethief." Arensyn said coldly, "In the same cart as all of us."

The man's scowl deepened but he didn't say anything. He glanced over at the great hulking Nord and asked, "What's wrong with him?"

"Watch your tongue! You're speaking to Jarl Ulfric Stormcloak, High King of Skyrim." Ralof snapped, glaring at the horsethief.

"Jarl Ulfric? If you're here then...oh god! Where are they taking us?!"

"Be quite over there." An Imperial barked and Arensyn turned around to see who had spoken. The one that had spoken sat behind them, high and mighty on horseback. She scowled in his general direction, noting his high cheekbones and cool blue eyes, the signature mark of a Nord. He couldn't have been very old, probably the same age as her if not a few years older. His long brown hair was covered by a hide helmet; one Aren could tell was brand new from the lack of wear and fade. Obviously, he wasn't a very high ranking Imperial.

"You can go to Oblivion, you piece of skeever shit!" Arensyn muttered under her breath. She saw his fingers tighten around the reins of his horse and she knew that she had made him squirm. The young Imperial quickly regained his composure, however, and let a small smirk stretch its way onto his lips.

"Hostility from a Stormcloak?" He chuckled. "Why am I not surprised."

She opened her mouth to say something but felt Ralof kick her gently, "Don't speak to him, Aren. He's below us anyway."

Aren pursed her lips but followed her superior officer's request and chose not to say anything else. Unbeknownst to them, the young Imperial had heard their exchange and stared down at the ground as his horse trotted alongside the cart. They were approaching a village surrounded by Imperials and instantly, Aren knew where they were. She had come here when she was just a little girl with Ralof. Massive walls of lumber encircled the town's perimeter, the only thing standing above them being the guard towers.

"General Tullius, Sir. The prisoners have arrived." The younger guard announced as the carts rolled through the massive wooden gates. The horsethief's gaze shifted in every direction and his breathing accelerated to near hyperventilation; he was really starting to panic.

"Akatosh...Dibella...Kynareth...Divines, help me!" He prayed quickly, sweat beginning to form at his brow. Ralof merely scoffed and watched the people as they passed by.

"Face your death with dignity, horsethief." He sighed in remembrance and Aren didn't have to guess what he was remembering, "Helgen. I used to be sweet on a girl from here. I wonder if Reela is still making her mead with juniper berries…" he looked down at Aren and gave her a warm smile, "I remember you trying to convince us that we would get married someday. Funny," He sighed again, "I remember when I was younger, Imperial walls used to make me feel safe."

The young Imperial narrowed his gaze at Ralof curiously, overhearing the conversation. "You mean to tell me you feel safer outside Imperial protection?"

"Indeed I do." Ralof replied simply.

"Why?" The young Imperial asked. "These are dangerous times. Chaos and anarchy would consume Skyrim if we didn't try to maintain order."

Ralof chuckled. "You truly believe that?" He asked. "The people you fight for are nothing more that greedy nobles. After the disappearance of the Blades and the emergence of the Thalmor as a military power, the Imperial Legion has become corrupt and is decaying."

The young Imperial tsked, immediately regretting engaging the prisoner in conversation. "Like I would believe the claims of a Stormcloak." He dismissed.

Ralof shook his head. "These are not the claims of a Stormcloak. These are the claims of a man on his way to death." The young Imperial and Arensyn looked at Ralof. "Men who are about to die are very honest. It pays to listen to them." The young Imperial scratched his chin through his full beard, pondering what Ralof said.

The cart slowed to a stop near a wide open plaza in the town and the young Imperial officer got off his horse. "End of the line, everyone get out!" He yelled as Aren stood up, her legs sore from the long journey. She jumped out of the cart and avoided the cool blue gaze of the officer, "Eyes up, wood elf."

"Talk to me one more time and I'll singe your face off, Imperial." She snarled, her fingers flexing inside her binds.

"Been practicing that one on yourself?" The young Imperial raised an eyebrow as he looked at her.

She opened her mouth to retort but was pushed forward as they began to read off names, "Empire loves their damned lists." Ralof muttered as Aren kept her eyes forward, trying to keep them off the arrogant guard.

"No, I'm not a rebel You can't do this!" The horsethief said in fear. He tried to run, no surprise, and was struck down by an arrow from a nearby guard. The arrow entered the back of his head and he fell to the ground in a heap.

The young Imperial pursed his lips as he turned to the guard that shot the horsethief. "Was killing him like that really necessary?" He asked.

"He was going to die anyway, why do you care?" The other guard asked with a smirk. The young Imperial tightened his hand into a fist, but quickly calmed himself down.

"He was nothing more than a horsethief." He calmly pointed out. "Shouldn't we be more focused on the Stormcloaks?"

The older guard raised an eyebrow. "You are too young to understand now, but all who defy Imperial law must be punished." The younger guard looked to the ground and crossed his arms in front of his chest. The older guard chuckled at the fresh guard, knowing that he would come around eventually.

They then announced Ralof and he stepped forward without any restraint. "My ancestors are smiling down at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?!" He demanded as he walked over to the chopping block.

The Imperial scowled and Aren stepped forward, "Arensyn J'Tori of Windhelm." He glanced up, surprised to see a wood elf standing in front of him. She was smaller and far more slight than the other women in Skyrim but her fierce eyes, their colors differing between a golden right iris and a dark blue one, told a different story. She had pale blonde hair that hung in a long side braid and slightly pointed ears, adorned with several sets of earrings. "A wood elf in Skyrim is an uncommon sight, young lady."

She smirked at the captain, "Well, if you untie me, Captain, I would love to sit down over a pint of ale and tell you all about it."

He nodded over to the chopping block and she shrugged off the younger Imperial's hand as he tried to walk her over there, "I can walk by myself thank you. I still have my dignity."

The guard dropped his hand and took a step back to allow her to walk over to the headsman. Cries of outrage broke out around the village, some in favor of the Stormcloak and others in those of the Imperials.

"How can you monsters do this?!" One young woman yelled in protest.

"Come on, make an example out of the lot!" An older man cheered.

"Read them their last rights!" The female captain barked as a priest began to speak about the afterlife, only mentioning eight of the nine Divines, conveniently leaving out Talos.

"For the love of Talos, shut up and let's get this over with." A Stormcloak snapped, walking up and dropping to his knees. The priest scowled and crossed her arms over her chest.

"As you wish," She said coldly as the female captain pushed on his back with her boot, making him lay down on the already bloody block. Aren felt tears well up in her eyes as she watched her comrade close his eyes, utter one last prayer and…

The axe came down and Aren had to cover her eyes as her friend's head was violently separated from his body, blood gushing out of the opened neck and staining the fresh snow crimson. Aren's face cringed and bit her lip as his body was pushed aside like garbage.

"Oh no..." Aren whispered, trying to keep herself from crying. "Gods…" She glanced over and saw the young Imperial just in time to notice him swallow hard and look away from the execution site. Surprisingly, he was just as disgusted as she was. What kind of Imperial was he?

"You bastards!" Another female stormcloak shouted. "How can you do this without giving us a trial!? There's supposed to be a trial!"

_What? _The young Imperial thought as he looked over to the Stormcloak. _They never had a trial? That… can't be true!_

"Don't try to talk to me about the law now, Stormcloak!" Tullius scowled. "You don't deserve a trial!" The young Imperial looked over at Tullius, feeling an anger grow inside of him. His tightened his fists so violently that he accidentally scratched his finger with his nail and it began to bleed, however he was too enraged to notice.

"Bring me the Bosomer girl!" The captain snapped as a roar echoed through the valley, piggybacking on the young Imperial looked into the sky, but saw nothing that could've made the strange noise he just heard. Aren bit her lip as Ralof pushed her forward gently.

"You'll be alright, Aren." He reassured her, "Talos will guide you."

The guards had obviously heard the noise, due to the fact that they were now looking around trying to figure out where it had come from. "What was that?" One murmured as the female captain's frown deepened.

"I said next prisoner!" She snapped as Aren looked back at Ralof, her eyes full of terror.

"Up to the block, elf, nice and easy now." The other captain tried to soothe her but he could tell that she was scared.

Finally, she swallowed her fear and held her head up proudly. She would be with her family again and perhaps get to finally meet her mother...

She dropped to her knees and closed her eyes, uttering one last prayer to Talos. "Talos, forgive them. They know not what they do." The young Imperial looked back down at the cutting block, and noticed that the wood elf was holding in her tears. At that moment, he felt something inside him snap. Something needed to be done.

The other guard's boot came up to rest on her back and she settled her cheek against the warm, sticky block. She had nothing to say that would change their minds. The only thing she had to do was make peace with the Divines that awaited her.

_I can't let this go on. _The young Imperial thought, gripping his sword's handle. _It isn't right!_

The axeman raised his axe into the air, preparing to end her life. The young Imperial unsheathed his sword and prepared to lunge forwards, but at that moment something caught Aren's eye. She thought it was a bird but she quickly realized that the creature was far too big to be any bird she'd ever seen. It was black as night and even from this distance, with an axe ready to end her, she still shivered as fear flooded her body.

"What in Oblivion is that?!" General Tullius exclaimed as a dragon claimed the nearest watchtower as its perch, knocking the executioner off balance just from the force of the landing. The young Imperial glared up at the strange creature with confusion and awe. The creature opened his great black maw, letting out a sound unlike anything they had ever heard; the roar ricocheting through their heads. Aren screamed and was sent flying back, the sound of its voice still ringing in her ears. The young Imperial saw this, and dashed over towards her.

"Guards, get the townspeople to safety!" Tullius shouted.

Aren rolled over and found herself looking up at a blackened sky; the clouds rolling and shifting like a vortex of darkness. Lightning shot down to the Earth, scorching any surface they struck.

"Get up, wood elf! Get up!" Someone yelled at her. She managed to look up to see someone standing above her in...red? That wasn't right. No, everyone she cared for wore blue. She frowned but sat up as someone pulled her to her feet, "You have to move right now! We won't get another chance!"

The young Imperial grabbed her by the arm and sprinted away from the village plaza towards one of the guard towers. The black dragon flew overhead and rained fire down upon them, bursting the tower the Imperial thought would be safe into flames. The dragon smashed the tower with its tail and brought it crumbling down into a pile.

"Damn! This way!" The younger Imperial spun around and pulled her along, the two running towards the closest entrance to the fortress. The young man opened the door and ushered her inside, quickly closing the door behind them. It blocked out the sounds of chaos and made Aren's ears throb. The rumbling underfoot reminded her that there was still a dragon outside, killing her friends. She shivered at the idea.

"That was..." the young man tried to collect himself but found he was having difficulty, "That was bloody insane." He looked around for a moment and scratched his head. "Come here, I'll get your binds off."

"It was a dragon," she whispered as he made short work of her binds. Once they fell away, the girl rubbed her wrists and eyed him suspiciously. "Just like in the old fables and legends."

"Yeah, I could see that." He panted. "But Legends don't burn down villages… what the hell is going on?"

"Don't look at me. I know just as much as you do." She frowned and looked around the rotunda where they now stood, "So, Imperial, how do we get out of here?"

"Well, assuming how I just helped you out and all, I think I deserve some sort of reward for my valiant efforts..." The Imperial said with a little smirk.

What he wasn't expecting was the sharp upper cut he received, making him cry out in pain and surprise, "What you really deserve is a kick in the teeth but unfortunately we don't have time for that." The elf snapped coldly, looking around the room.

"Calm down… I was only kidding." He said, rubbing his jaw.

"It didn't sound like it, Imperial." She responded sourly, still frowning.

"Look, if we're going to leave here together, you should at least trust me a little bit. Your name is Arensyn, right?" He asked, crossing his arms. Aren nodded hesitantly, "Well, my name is Gray and..."

"Names aren't going to help us get out of here. Are there any supplies I can use on the way out of here?" She interrupted, trying to think of the best way to get herself far away from Gray.

"Um, well yes..." Gray bit his lip, knowing that she wouldn't like where it had come from, "We strip the dead Stormcloaks and leave their armor and weapons in crates down in the basement."

Aren shot him a dirty look, "Savages."

"If it makes you feel any better, I haven't had to do that." Gray said as he walked over to a nearby table. He grabbed some fruit from a basket and loaded it into his satchel, "This was supposed to be my first real mission… just escorting a group of convicted prisoners for their sentence. It's not how I envisioned it ending."

She glanced over at him, surprise dancing in her dark eyes, "ever?"

"Ever." He confirmed.

"Well… fine." She could sense the honesty in his eyes. "But we were never convicted of anything… never got so much as a basic trial."

Gray tightened his hands into fists at his side. "Yes… I heard about that before the dragon showed up. It infuriates me that the Legion let that happen." He said as he began to walk down the steps towards the basement, "Come on. If General Tullius finds out I'm helping you, my head's gonna be taken off my body as well."

"Why are you helping me, anyway?" Aren asked, giving him a narrow stare.

Gray stopped for a moment and looked over his shoulder at her with a serious expression. He opened his mouth to say something, but hesitated for some reason. "I… I joined the Imperial Legion because I wanted to help people and bring order to Tamriel. Today I realized that not everybody in the Legion feels that way." Aren gave him a confused look before Gray turned back around. "Let's keep moving. That thing is still out there."

She nodded and the two of them followed the steps down, eventually reaching a small narrow hallway that led to a closed metal gate. "Here, the supplies are just past this-"

"We need to get moving!" A male voice suddenly echoed through the building. "That dragon is tearing up the whole keep!"

"Shhh… someone's there." Gray whispered as he and Aren hugged the walls; slowly walking over towards the metal gate.

"Just give me a minute…" A female voice panted. "I'm out of breath."

"Those are Stormcloaks!" Aren whispered with a smile. She rushed over to the side of the gate and pulled on a lever, causing the gate to open.

"Wait, don't!" Gray tried to stop her, but she was already through the gate before he could say more. "Great… I hope we can reason with them." Aren looked to her right and found two Stormcloaks leaning against the wall.

"Halt, who are you?!" The male asked.

"I'm Arensyn J'Tori, the wood elf that fought with you for quite some time...I was captured along with Ralof and Jarl Ulfric and..."

She stopped when she realized they were looking at something behind her. Aren looked behind her to see Gray walking through the gate, rubbing the back of his head. "An Imperial Guard!" The female shouted, grabbing her battle axe. The other Stormcloak unsheathed his sword and glared at Gray.

"Hold on, everyone calm down." Gray put his hands out in front of him in a slow manner. "We have more important things to worry about right now then Imperials and Storm-"

"Get him!" The male Stormcloak shouted, lunging towards Gray.

"Damn it!" Gray shouted as he dodged a vertical strike from the Stormcloak's sword.

The female Stormcloak prepared to assist her comrade before Aren got in front of her. "Hold on, he saved my life!"

"How many other lives has he taken?!" She asked in a fit of rage.

"I haven't killed anyone!" Gray ducked under a horizontal strike from the male Stormcloak before knocking him over with a swift kick to the legs. He stood back up, still putting his hands in front of him. "Stop this! I am not your enemy right now!"

However, the female Stormcloak was faster than he had anticipated; sprinting past Aren and knocking him off his feet. "You've killed too many Stormcloaks and now you will atone for your sins!" She raised her battleaxe to finish off Gray, but Aren quickly grabbed the male's sword and as hard as she could, and smashed the blunt side into her cohort's head. Her eyes rolled back into her skull and she slumped to the floor.

"You monsters!" The male Stormcloak tried to stand up, but Gray quickly pulled out his sword and pointed it at his neck.

"Don't get up." Gray cautioned. "I'd prefer that I didn't have to use this."

Aren allowed her hand to fall to her side and she tucked the blade into her waistband, quickly going to work of stripping the other girl of her armor.

"Turn the other way," Aren hissed angrily, quickly stripping out of her rags and pulling on the familiar curiss that she was so used to wearing.

The male Stormcloak couldn't help that his eyes slowly looked over at the elf, and this didn't go unnoticed by Gray. He lightly tapped the top of his head with the sword to get his attention before pointing it back at his neck "Hey, the lady said not to look."

She finally turned back to Gray and nodded, "Okay, I'm ready." She looked back down at her cohort who was still at Gray's mercy and frowned, "Don't try and follow us, Andolf. If you try, I'll put an arrow through your neck."

"You've dishonored Skyrim, Aren. I thought you were my sister." He snarled as she grabbed the bow and quiver of arrows from the female Stormcloak's back.

"If I was dishonoring Skyrim, your blood would be on the ground." She responded coldly before walking towards the stairs. Gray kept his eyes trained on the Stormcloak until they were out of eyesight.

"That was intense." Gray said as he sheathed his sword. The duo was walking down another dark hallway, dimly lit by a few torches attached to the walls. "I thought they would at least listen to reason…"

"The war goes further back than you or I could even fathom. There is blood spilt that not even a dragon could cleanse." Aren explained as they neared the cellar, "Down this hallway?"

"Yes, hopefully we won't run into anyone-." Gray was interrupted by the sound of cracking stone, just before the roof of the building blasted to pieces and fell right in front of them. He coughed as dust entered his lungs before looking at the obstacle that had just fallen to block their path. The dragon's muffled roar echoed into the building from the outside, and Gray rolled his eyes. "I am really starting to hate that fucking dragon."

"Great, now what?" Aren asked.

Gray looked to his left and saw a wooden door that led into an old Imperial storeroom. "This way, we can go around it." He said as he pushed open the door. The aroma of cold food wafted into Aren's nose, disgusting her as she followed behind Gray. Her sharp features wrinkled as Gray pointed out potions of healing that Aren inspected suspiciously. In the end she took them, putting it into her own satchel that she had found hanging up on the wall.

They continued towards the other side of the room as Aren opened the door and looked back towards the right. It was jam packed with all sorts of junk to barricade one side and so, she looked over at the left to see more stairs leading downwards. What really surprised her though was the fact that sitting right in front of her was a cart full of perfectly good cabbages. Gray had yet to see the elf smile but was surprised to see her do as such, picking one up and sliding it into her bag.

"That's Imperial prop-" he began to say but a glare from Aren shut him up in a heartbeat.

"Does it really matter right now?" She asked seriously as she walked over to another door and peeked through it.

Gray smirked nervously as he followed her over. "No, I guess not." He hesitated. "Sorry… force of habit." He grabbed a torch from the wall and followed her through the door and down into a dark and damp stone staircase.

"How much further?" She asked as they continued to trek down the steps.

"Not too much further," he admitted, "We have to get out of the fortress and exit through the caves."

"Where are we heading right now?" Aren asked.

"Uhh…" Gray hesitated for a moment. "The… torture room." Aren raised an eyebrow as she looked back at him, not surprised in the slightest that the Imperials would have such a thing. "Don't look at me like that; I didn't design this building."

They continued on until yelling caught their attention, "More guards." She hissed, "can you tell if they're Stormcloaks or Imperials?"

"Hang on." Gray said as they inched their way closer to the bottom of the steps until they heard the sound of clashing steel. They rounded the corner just in time to find a group of Imperials finish off the last Stormcloak prisoner. He fell to the ground in a bloody heap; his throat slit open by an Imperial knife.

"Gods…" Aren covered her mouth as Gray pulled her back into the stairwell and out of sight.

"Stay here." Gray whispered. "We don't want a repeat of last time." Aren opened her mouth, but Gray stepped out of the stairwell before she could say anything.

One of the Imperials noticed Gray walk out of the shadows, earning a smile from the guard. "By the Gods, Gray Colburn!" He said in surprise, catching the attention of the other guards. "You're alive!"

Gray nodded at the guards and gave them a wry smile, "Yeah well, how about this dragon, eh?"

"It's like the stories my mother told me as a child." The first murmured, "the harbinger of end times."

"How are we supposed to fight something like that?" Another guard asked nervously.

"I honestly don't know." Gray shook his head, trying to contemplate several plans to take the beast down. However, he realized nothing he thought of would work.

"Gray, come with us. We have to get out of here," one said nervously and looked back the way that he had come, "The Stormcloaks we captured got loose before we found out they had the Shadow Archer with them."

Gray furrowed his brow in confusion, "The...Shadow Archer?"

"Yes, haven't you heard news coming out of Windhelm? She was Ulfric's personal bodyguard; saved him from two or three assassination attempts if I remember correctly." The first Imperial said, "it's the elf, Colburn. They should have killed her first."

He was unaware that his traveling companion had such a colorful history with the killer of kings. "Well, talking about her isn't going to get us out of here."

"Agreed," the other nodded, "we're not too far away from the cave system but we're in bad shape. If we get ambushed by the Stormcloaks..."

"We'll fight them off," Gray finished.

Aren was beginning to feel a little unsettled by Gray and the other guards. Would he betray her knowing she was the Shadow Archer? She wasn't sure… he was a very hard man to read.

Suddenly, she felt the cold edge of a knife press against her throat as someone from behind grabbed her. "Don't move, if you want to keep breathing." Came a scratchy male voice.

_Damn it! _She thought. _How did he sneak up on me?!_

"Well well, what do we have here? A Stormcloak sticking her nose where it doesn't belong." The older man snickered. "Guards! Over here!" He shouted, pulling Aren out of the shadows and into the light. Gray's eyes widened in surprise as he spun around to find Aren being held by a white haired man in a brown hooded cloak. "Look what I found hiding like a rat!"

"A Stormcloak?!" The first guard said as he pulled out his sword. "And a wood elf at that… could it be the Shadow Archer?"

"Well done, Hergil!" The second guard smiled. "Let's kill her now while we still have the chance!"

"Lets give the honor to Colburn!" The first guard smiled. "If I'm not mistaken, you have yet to put a kill under your belt. What's a better first kill than the Shadow Archer?"

Gray looked between the guards and Aren; a single bead of sweat trickling down the side of his face. "Ugh." He said out loud. "You just had to be caught, didn't you?" He looked over at Aren, who shot him an angry glare.

"Wait… what are you talking about-" before the first guard could finish, Gray quickly pulled his dagger off his hip and threw it at Aren and Hergil. The dagger went right past Aren's head and embedded itself right between Hergil's eyes, killing him instantly. Aren reacted quickly; grabbing Hergil's dagger before he fell to the ground and throwing it at the first guard. The dagger impaled the guard's throat, spraying blood everywhere like a fountain of red. He tried to speak as he fell to his knees, but the only sound he made was a painful gurgle as he died in a pool of his own blood.

"What in Oblivion?!" The second guard shouted in confusion.

"They're working together?!" The third guard unsheathed his sword and prepared for a fight.

"Well… no going back now." Gray figured. Fire materialized in his hands before he threw them out in front of him, blasting the last two guards with a fire spell. They screamed in pain as they tried to put the fire out, all before falling to the ground and burning to ashes.

Aren stared at Gray in surprise. "You can use fire magic?" She asked.

Gray blew on his hands to put the fire out before turning to Aren. "I'm surprised you didn't know. Everyone in the Colburn family knows fire spells." He glanced over at the charred remains of what used to be his comrades and sighed. "Although considering I've just killed three Imperials to save a Stormcloak… I may not be a Colburn for much longer."

The building suddenly shook violently as the roar of the dragon echoed from outside. Gray and Aren looked to the ceiling at the same time, hoping it didn't collapse again. "That damned thing is going to bring the entire fortress down on top of us!" Aren said, concerned.

"We're almost out. Come on!" Gray led Aren through one last wooden door and down a long dark hallway. Aren took notice of the several prison cells that lined the hallway, and almost every single one had a Stormcloak's body inside. She shook it off and continued down the hallway, taking a left and going down one last flight of stairs until they reached a large room full of chests and shelves. The wall on the furthest end of the room had a massive hole blown into it, leading into a dark cave system lit by fire pits.

"Quick, take whatever you need!" Gray rushed over to a chest and opened it, taking out a belt that had several pouches for storing supplies. He wrapped it around his waist and tightened it before shifting through the rest of the chest.

Aren followed his lead, opening a chest and tightening storage belt around her waist. She eventually found a few basic alchemy supplies that she tucked into her belt and secured with the small drawstring.

Aren glanced over at Gray and saw him take a leather cloak out of the chest and put it on, covering his Imperial armor. He took off his helmet and threw it on the ground, revealing his short unkempt brown hair just before he slung the hood over his head. "What are you doing?" Aren asked.

Gray looked over and smiled. "I'm masking my appearance in case we run into anymore Stormcloaks or Imperials." He unsheathed his Imperial sword from his waist and threw it to the ground before taking a standard Steel Sword and sheathing it. "You should do the same."

"Why would I do that?" Aren asked. "I don't know about you, but I'm going back to the Stormcloaks once I'm out of here."

Gray raised an eyebrow. "Do you not realize what we've done?" He asked. "We are both traitors to our factions, and neither one will take us back at this point." He noted as he took a few small bags of gold and put them in one of his pouches. "We're on our own now."

She hated to admit it, but he was right. She had spared Andolf's life, and there was no doubt that he would tell everyone about her working with an Imperial. Gray threw another leather cloak at Aren, surprising her as she caught it. "Put that on. We'll have to wear these until we find something else."

She scowled, but eventually put on the cloak. They stayed another minute to take what they could from the chests before heading through to the cave entrance. "Ok… Gray, what exactly is your plan?"

Gray looked back at her as they walked through the caves. "There's a small village not too far from here called Riverwood. I have a friend there who can help us stay incognito while we figure out what we're going to do."

Aren waited for a moment, expecting to hear more. "That's it?" She asked. "That's your brilliant plan?"

"What do you expect? There's not exactly a lot of options right now." Gray replied as the duo walked into a much larger portion of the cave. They walked down a set of stone steps and came across a small underground stream. They followed the stream down as far as they could, eventually reaching a fork where the stream became too narrow to pass through.

"Well… looks like we have to go this way." Gray commented as they pushed on. Aren kept a hand on the cave wall as they continued, suddenly feeling something sticky. She removed her hand to inspect it and found webbing stuck to it, earning a shriek from the usually calm wood elf. Gray spun around to witness Aren frantically wiping the web off on her cloak. "Spiders! There's spiders down here!"

"You can't be serious." Gray sweat dropped. "You're afraid of spiders?" Aren shot Gray another glare he could've sworn would melt through iron armor. "Calm down, will you?" Gray asked. "It was just a-" Gray stopped talking as he realized a look of horror on Aren's face as she looked at something directly behind him. He slowly turned around to the biggest Frostbite Spider he'd ever seen in his life approaching him, fangs ready to strike.

"Oh shit!" He jumped out of the way of the Spider's venom, drawing his sword as he landed back on the ground. "That's a big ass spider!"

"What? 'You're afraid of spiders?'" Aren mocked as she drew back on her bow and took aim. She launched an arrow through the air, hitting the spider directly in its tiny brain. The spider fell to the floor with a 'thud' as Gray stood back up, and Aren shuttered as she stared at the spider's body.

"No, not usually. But I am afraid of spiders that are slightly bigger than a horse!" He retorted, whipping the dirt off his cloak. The duo continued on through the cave system, realizing that the giant spider they killed wasn't the only one in there. However, they were easily able to kill any spider that got in their way as they proceeded to the final room in the cave.

"Whoa, slow down." Gray stopped Aren and the two ducked down behind a small boulder. "Damn it… there's a bear over near the exit."

"Apparently you've never spent time with a wood elf before." She unsheathed her bow and knocked an arrow, narrowing her eyes. The bear was instantly alerted by her presence, its beady black eyes scouring the cave until it finally saw Aren sneaking towards it. Biting his lip, Gray was surprised to hear a series of grunts and growls escape her mouth. For a minute, the bear seemed entranced by her words, swaying back and forth with the movement of her body.

All seemed going well until she turned away for a split second to usher Gray to the exit. This instant caused the spell to be broken and the bear let out an enraged roar, rearing up on its hind legs. It raised its paw to end her life and Gray went to grab his sword but she was ready.

"Aren!" He cried as she rolled out of the way and pulled the string back on her bow, letting her arrow fly through the bear's eye, piercing its brain. With a gurgled roar, the bear stumbled and was no more. Aren popped up and dusted off her knees before sheathing her bow.

"I had it." She muttered, "That stupid bear..."

"What did you do, exactly?" Gray asked as he skirted around the bear, trying not to look at it in its dead eyes. Aren walked over and pulled the arrow from the glassy gaze and put it back in her quiver.

"It's called Command Animal." She explained calmly, "All wood elves can do it. It's just a matter of how strong it is. Unfortunately, I haven't used in a long time. I wasn't sure if it would work."

"Wow... So if you train hard enough with that, do you think you could control that dragon?" He asked, putting a hand to his chest.

She paused for a moment, having never thought of that. She immediately banished the thought from her mind, wondering how she could've' even considered it. "I doubt it. That dragon was more powerful than anything I've ever seen."

"Well there goes that plan." Gray said sarcastically, disappointed that it couldn't have been that easy. He crouched down next to the bear and took out his dagger.

"What are you doing?" Aren asked.

"We have a whole bear here." Gray started. "Could use some of it for hide, meat, stuff like that." Gray stuck his dagger into the bear and began cutting down it's torso, earning a disgusted look from Aren as she turned and looked away. It only took a few moments for Gray to cut out what he needed before packing it into his storage belt, eventually standing back up and putting his dagger back on his hip.

"Alright, let's go." Gray popped his knuckles before continuing on, Aren being right behind him. The exit was much closer than Gray anticipated, as the duo saw the blinding light entering in from the end of the cave.

"This looks like the way out!" Aren said with a tired smile.

"I was starting to wonder if we'd ever make it." Gray sighed as he and Aren stepped out of the cave and into the light of day. A cold wind blew past them as they exited the cave, slightly numbing their faces as they stepped into fresh snow. Despite this the cold didn't bother them at all, in fact they both welcomed the feeling. It meant they were alive.

Grey stretched his arms into the air and groaned. "Oh man! It feels good to be out of that ca-"

"Get down!" Aren suddenly grabbed Gray and pulled him down behind a large boulder, effectively interrupting him. Before Gray could ask what she was doing, the sound of massive flapping wings echoed in the valley before them. Suddenly, the black dragon that attacked Helgen flew overhead at an intense velocity, letting out one last roar before vanishing into the distance.

"I guess those ears aren't just for show." Gray smiled.

"Looks like he's gone for good this time." Aren commented, slowly standing back up. "Regardless, we shouldn't stick around to see if he comes back."

"Sound logic." Gray commented as he stood back up.

"You said Riverwood was North of here?" Aren asked as she looked at Gray.

"That's right. Might take us about an hour on foot." Gray began walking down a makeshift clearing through the woods. "My friend is a blacksmith there. He should be able to help us out."

"Alright… but the only reason I'm going along with this is because it's the only option available to me right now." Aren assured.

"Fine by me." Gray agreed.

The duo made their way across the freezing landscape, climbing up hills, shifting through icy streams, and enduring the harsh winds. Eventually the duo arrived at an actual stone road, finding a sign saying Riverwood was just within reach. In the distance Aren noticed a large set of ruins built into a mountain that appeared to resemble that of a creature's spine. "Whoa… you see that?" She asked as they walked along.

Gray looked over to where she was pointing. "What, the ruins? That's Bleak Falls Barrow." He started. "Creepy place… I've never actually been much closer to it than we are now."

"Oh? Why's that?" She asked, curious.

"Never had a reason to get closer." Gray replied simply.

The duo kept following the stone path, and after nearly an hour of constant walking finally reached Riverwood. The stone path led to a large wall constructed from wood and stone, leaving a large opening to which people would pass through to enter the town. It was a small town; having only about a dozen buildings or so which included a tavern, a smith, and and a merchant shop.

"Gods… it's been ages since I've been here." Gray said, getting a feeling of nostalgia.

"This friend of yours, where are they?" Aren asked as they passed under the archway into town. An Imperial soldier stood watch from under the archway, keeping an eye on the duo as they entered.

"Hang on… this guy could be a problem." Gray whispered as they tried to act natural.

"Hey, you two. Stop right there." The guard said calmly, starting to walk over towards them.

"Busted." Aren said as she watched the guard approach.

"What is your business here?" The guard asked, placing his hands to his hips.

Gray turned around to face the guard, grabbing something from under his shirt. The guard tensed at this, grabbing hold of his sword's handle. Gray pulled a necklace out and showed it to the guard. It was a golden medallion with a fireball engraved in the center; the mark of the Colburn family.

"I am Tribune Jato Colburn of the Imperial Legion!" Gray lied. "First son of Heath Colburn, and your superior."

Aren raised an eyebrow at this, wondering how he expected a performance like that to fool anyone. However, the guard's eyes widened at this as he immediately saluted Gray. "Tribun Colburn, sir! I'm sorry, I've never had the pleasure of meeting you in person so I didn't know who you were!"

'_You must be kidding.' _Aren thought to herself, inwardly rollng her eyes.

"At ease soldier." Gray put his necklace back under his shirt.

"Thank you, sir." The guard relaxed slightly before noticing Aren. "I just don't understand why you're traveling in the company of an elf. Your family always said that they were nothing but trouble."

Gray felt Aren stiffen besides him at his comment, "Uh, well, she is personal consort, protecting me from Skyrim's dangers and whatnot." Gray said, making it up as he went. "It's not my choice anyway… orders from the Legion."

The Imperial looked suspicious but allowed the two to pass. As soon as they were out of earshot, Aren turned to him, her dark eyes irritated, "Your consort? Seriously?"

"I couldn't have said that you were secretly a Stormcloak soldier," Gray told her as her shoulders relaxed slightly.

"I guess you're right."

"Speaking of Stormcloak, might I ask what exactly is so special about the Shadow Archer?" He questioned. Aren didn't answer at first but the question hung in the air like a stench. He knew that she wasn't too keen on answering.

"Apparently, you've never heard that name," She mused softly after some time, "Jarl Ulfric allowed me to stay at his side as long as I made something of myself. He knew that Bosomers are particularly skilled with archery and so sent me away to learn from an old master that he had known. Not even a day after I returned, he sent me out to assassinate a visiting diplomat." She closed her eyes, trying not to think about it, "I have more blood on my hands than you think, Colburn. You may not have killed people but I've killed enough for the both of us."

He was silent for a moment, before speaking again, "How old are you?"

She opened her eyes, "I'm eighteen."

Gray was flabbergasted. She was nearly a child! He silently thanked the Divines that he had saved her. The wood elf was all he had right now, "Come on, my friend's shop isn't too far from here."

Gray and Aren made their way down the short path to the smithing shop, nearly tripping over a chicken as they walked up the wooden steps. There, standing at a workbench, was Alvor. He hammered down on white hot steel, shaping it into what Gray assumed to be the handle for a long sword. Alvor took notice of the guests and threw the hot metal into a tub of water, shooting steam into the air as the metal cooled, before turning to face them.

"Welcome, strangers! How can I help you?" He asked. Alvor was an older man nearing his 50's; he had long dark blonde hair and a full beard to match, as well as a friendly face with many wrinkles around his mouth. Gray pulled his hood back to reveal his face, earning a surprised look from Alvor. "Mister Colburn! It's been a while, what brings you to Riverwood?"

"Al, I need your help." Gray started. "I'm in some pretty big trouble."

Alvor looked around cautiously while raising an eyebrow. "I'm always happy to help. What kind of trouble?"

Gray looked around for a moment, making sure nobody was watching. He took a step back and grabbed hold of Aren's cloak, slightly pulling it to the side to reveal some of her Stormcloak uniform. Alvor's eyes widened at this. Aren batted his hand away, the cloak falling back to cover her uniform.

"Oh… _that_ kind of trouble…" He commented, swallowing hard.

"You know I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't important." Gray claimed.

"It better be damned important." Alvor replied, crossing his arms.

"You know Helgen? The village I was just stationed at a few days ago?" Gray asked.

"Yes, I recall hearing about that." Alvor nodded.

"Well Helgen was just burned to the ground by a dragon." Gray claimed, trying to be as quiet as he could.

"What? A dragon?" Alvor asked, rubbing his beard. "Hmmm… so she was right after all.."

Gray hesitated for a moment. "Wait… who was right about what?"

"Hilde, that old woman that lives across the road." He pointed to the house, and the old woman just so happened to be sitting outside in a chair. "Said she saw a dragon fly right over the mountains towards Whiterun. No one believes her, but if what you say is true..."

"It is true." Aren jumped in. "We were there when it happened, that dragon is as real as the weapons you forge." Arvol paused, not quite sure how to answer.

"I rescued Arensyn here while the dragon was attacking, and I had to kill three fellow Imperials to escape." Gray added.

"You did _what?_" Arvol felt a bead of sweat trickle down his face.

"I nearly killed two of my own comrades." Aren continued. "They will most likely not take me back."

Arvol turned away from the duo and ran a hand through his thick blonde hair. "Oh this is a mess… I can't believe this." He said. So much happened in just the span of two hours… a dragon appears and destroys a town, forcing two would-be enemies to join forces against their own factions in order to escape with their lives.

After a few more moments of thought, Arvol spun around and placed both hands on Gray's shoulders. "Alright, I'll help you."

"Thanks, Al!" Gray said with a smile.

"Wait… I have a condition." Alvor looked at the duo with serious intent.

"Oh… alright. What is it?" Gray asked curiously.

Arvol paused for a moment, looking out at the mountains in the distance. "This dragon you speak of… you said it destroyed Helgen?"

"Neither the Imperials nor the Stormcloaks stood a chance." Aren said, tightening her hand into a fist.

"Then Riverwood will need protection." Arvol concluded, looking back at the duo. "I want you to warn Whiterun of the threat and get the Jarl to spare us some soldiers. There's no way we could hold off a dragon attack on our own."

Aren nodded, "Of course. Anything to help protect Skyrim."

Gray popped his neck and smiled. "It'd be the least I could do after all the times you've helped me."

Alvor turned from the workbench and ushered them inside the building. Inside, a woman sat by the fire and a young girl drew pictures on scrolls of paper, humming a vaguely familiar tune to both pairs of ears. As soon as the door was opened, she stood and brushed off her dress. "Alvor, what in the name of The Divines...who are these people?!"

"Relax," Aldor waved a dismissive hand and shrugged, "Sigrid, you remember Gray Colburn?"

"Of course!" She responded, still eyeing the two suspiciously, "but who's the elf?"

Aren lowered her eyes, "I am Aren and am helping Gray to reach Whiterun."

"What's this all about?!" Sigrid demanded, "Alvor, please tell me!"

"There has been a dragon attack in Helgen, Sigrid," Alvor explained, "These two need to get to Jarl Balgruuf to tell him to send troops to Riverwood. Do we have anything we can send them off with?"

After a moment and without asking questions, Sigrid walked over to the shelves and pulled out several wheels of cheese, some fruit, a few lockpicks and even a health potion or two, handing it over to the two, "If it's true what you say, I fear you will need quite a bit more." Sigrid said grimly, "But this is all we can give you."

"Thank you for your kindness," Gray said as he slid a wheel of cheese into his satchel. Sigrid nodded and then flicked her eyes to the door.

"You don't have much time; you should go. Take the road out of the village and just follow it down the mountain." Aldor said, guiding them towards the front door, "And good luck. I have a feeling both of you will need it." With that, they found themselves standing on the front porch with a daunting task and an even darker truth hanging above their heads.

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><p><strong>SGX: "And there you have it!"<strong>

**QOA: "We hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter of this epic story!"**

**SGX: "Be sure to review! We love having some input from our readers!"**


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